The board of the Social Security Office (SSO) has opposed extending its relief compensation scheme to subscribers made jobless as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a board member.
The members of the board, chaired by labour permanent secretary Suthee Sukosol, voiced their opposition at a meeting on Tuesday.
They did not want the compensation, drawn from the Social Security Fund (SSF), extended to assist jobless subscribers until the end of the year, as requested by Labour Minister MR Chatu Mongol Sonakul.
The SSO had sought additional financial assistance for its 86,128 members who worked less than 26 days before losing jobs. The law limits the office from compensating such workers at 62% of daily wages, which for most is less than 5,000 baht a month.
According to the board, the SSF finished paying the compensation three months ago. The compensation had been paid out to allow the employers time to revive their businesses and get back on their feet before they can rehire workers.
The compensation cost the fund about 12 billion baht. Extending it until the end of the year could destabilise the financial standing of the fund, according to the source.
However, Theerawit Wongpet, a board member, said the issue will be considered in detail in the next board meeting on July 30.
Meanwhile, the government yesterday reported five new cases of Covid-19, all quarantined returnees.
Panprapa Yongtrakul, an assistant spokeswoman for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), said the five new patients returned from Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.
One of them was a woman, 48, who arrived from the US on Saturday and was quarantined in Bangkok. Two others were male workers aged 43 and 49 who returned from Singapore on Monday.
The last two were a man, 27, and a woman, 35, who arrived from the UAE on July 2 and were quarantined in Chon Buri province. They tested positive on Monday, 11 days after arrival, but remained asymptomatic.